This and that for your Tuesday reading. – Paul Krugman weighs in on the scam that is trickle-down economics, particularly in the form of tax-free zones which encourage domestic tax evasion. – Timothy Taylor writes about the changing nature of work – while highlighting that workers who value secure and
Continue readingTag: Paul Krugman
Alberta Politics: Never mind sparse facts in Alberta’s first-quarter financial update, its subtext is deep cuts are coming soon
The United Conservative Party Government led by Jason Kenney wants deep cuts, and, by God, it’s going to have them. That includes tax cuts, which will drive the province’s books deeper into the red, and cuts to services to help pay for the tax breaks. If the facts, such as
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Tuesday Morning Links
This and that for your Tuesday reading. – Paul Krugman writes about the U.S. Republicans’ new complaint of evil eye economics – though it shouldn’t come as much surprise that people who treat the economy as nothing more than a confidence game would object to anybody pointing out how the
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Friday Morning Links
Assorted content to end your week. – Richard Cannings comments on the need for governments to collect a fair share of revenue from wealthy individuals and corporations. And Erin Weir argues that Canada’s federal government shouldn’t subsidize Jason Kenney’s corporate tax giveaway with abatements on federal taxes. – Meanwhile, Paul
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Tuesday Morning Links
This and that for your Tuesday reading. – The Washington Post reports that July 2019 set new records as the hottest month ever measured on Earth. David Suzuki offers a reminder of the catastrophic consequences of failing to put and end to our climate breakdown. And Roger Harrabin warns against
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Sunday Morning LInks
This and that for your Sunday reading. – James Cairns discusses why socialism is seeing a resurgence in popularity, particularly among younger citizens who see little reason for hope in politics as usual: Occupy Wall Street popularized the language of the 99 per cent and the 1 per cent as
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Why are Conservative-run Canadian provinces turning down federal cash? The answer’s in the Republican playbook
When Prime Minister Justin Trudeau observed back on April 16 that the Ontario provincial government led by Premier Doug Ford was throwing roadblocks in the way of Ontario municipalities accessing federal money for needed transportation infrastructure, Conservatives responded with angry denials, and not just in Ontario. The prime minister had
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Thursday Morning Links
This and that for your Thursday reading. – Robert Reich points out that the most significant political divide is the one between the wealthiest few and the rest of the population: In reality, the biggest divide in America today runs between oligarchy and democracy. When oligarchs fill the coffers of
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Friday Morning Links
Assorted content to end your week. – Bob Hepburn discusses how Doug Ford has turned a populist campaign into government solely for the benefit of the privileged few. And Paul Krugman rightly notes that it’s the Republicans who stoke resentment in the U.S.’ rust belt who actually express contempt for
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Friday Morning Links
Assorted content for your Friday reading. – Paul Krugman offers a reminder that the gap between the 1% and the rest of us is far larger than most people are permitted to see: (T)here’s also a big difference between being affluent, even very affluent, and having the kind of wealth
Continue readingAlberta Politics: How to save a province by destroying it: Jason Kenney releases the Full Monty, political version
About that 117-page “full platform” released by United Conservative Party Leader Jason Kenney on the billionaire Southern Family’s back stoop south of Calgary yesterday, the first thing it’ll do is raise the deficit. That’s right! Raise it. Increase it. Make it bigger. Because that’s what happens when you eliminate at
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Saturday Morning Links
Assorted content for your weekend reading. – Frank Graves and Michael Valpy discuss the contrast between Canadian voters who are rightly concerned about the gap in wealth and power between the rich and the rest of us, and the Lib and Con politicians who go out of their way to
Continue readingAlberta Politics: A Tale of Two Columns: What drives the conservative urge to wreck public health care?
One of the unusual features of the past four years in Alberta has been the remarkable calm that has prevailed in our normally tumultuous, shambolic, sometimes chaotic health care system. Under the NDP Government, for the first time in the past 30 years at least, health care hasn’t been a
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Sunday Morning Links
This and that for your Sunday reading. – Robert Reich writes about the laughable spin that the Trump Republicans’ giveaways to the privileged and elimination of supports for the vast majority of people result in anything approaching a meritocracy: The monstrous concentration of wealth in America has not only created
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Deficit hawks fall silent in Washington but screech in Alberta and Canada – what gives?
It’s starting to feel like spring, the days are longer, and the deficit hawks, apparently, have all flown north for the summer. As a result, nowadays, the hawks’ angry shrieks are seldom heard in Washington! “The federal budget deficit is ballooning on President Trump’s watch and few in Washington seem
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Jason Kenney invites the tax-cut fairy back to Alberta! She’s bringing snake oil!
Oh for crying out loud! The tax cut fairy has returned to Alberta! She’s brought snake oil! United Conservative Party Leader Jason Kenney, lately rebranded The Policy Guy ™, has promised a massive cut in business taxes to create jobs. In Calgary yesterday, Mr. Kenney vowed to slash the lowest
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Tuesday Morning Links
This and that for your Tuesday reading. – Keith Stewart writes about the determination of the oil industry to push people to vote for environmental destruction. But as an alternative, Ann Pettifor highlights the important economic and environmental progress on offer through the Green New Deal: The Green New Deal
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Sunday Morning Links
This and that for your Sunday reading. – Paul Krugman duly mocks Donald Trump’s attempt to turn any discussion of social investment into a threat of “socialism”: Some progressive U.S. politicians now describe themselves as socialists, and a significant number of voters, including a majority of voters under 30, say
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: New column day
Here (via PressReader), on the U.S.’ long-overdue conversation about progressive taxes on extreme incomes and wealth – and the need for Canada to follow suit. For further reading…– Matthew Yglesias has offered useful background on Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’ high-end income tax proposal, Elizabeth Warren’s wealth tax proposal, Bernie Sanders’ estate tax
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Sunday Morning Links
This and that for your Sunday reading. – Paul Krugman examines the economics of a higher tax rate on extreme high-income individuals: Diamond, in work with Emmanuel Saez — one of our leading experts on inequality — estimated the optimal top tax rate to be 73 percent. Some put it
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